Tag Archives: Minnesota Twins

Keeping Track

1970 Rewind: ALCS Game Two

BALTIMORE 11, MINNESOTA 3 IN MINNESOTA

Date:  Sunday, October 4.

Batting stars:  Harmon Killebrew was 1-for-3 with a two-run homer (his second) and a walk.  Tony Oliva was 1-for-4 with a home run.

Pitching star:  Stan Williams pitched three perfect innings and struck out one.

Opposition stars:  Mark Belanger was 3-for-4 with a walk and three runs.  Boog Powell was 3-for-5 with two doubles and three RBIs.  Dave McNally was 2-for-5 with a double.  Frank Robinson was 1-for-3 with a two-run homer, two walks, and two runs.  Dave Johnson was 1-for-5 with a three-run homer.  McNally also pitched a complete game, giving up three runs on six hits and five walks and striking out five.

The game:  Belanger and Paul Blair opened the game by drawing walks.  With one out Powell hit an RBI double, giving the Orioles a 1-0 lead.  It went to 3-0 in the third when Belanger singled and Robinson hit a two-run homer.  In the fourth Andy Etchebarren reached second on a single-plus-error and scored on McNally's single, making it 4-0 Baltimore.

The Twins got back into the game in the bottom of the fourth.  Leo Cardenas walked and Killebrew hit a two-run homer followed by a solo homer by Oliva, cutting the margin to 4-3.  But there it stayed until the ninth.  The Twins missed a chance in the fifth.  Williams drew a one-out walk and went to second on a Cesar Tovar single.  Cardenas followed with another single, but Williams was thrown out at the plate.  They had another chance in the sixth when George Mitterwald hit a two-out double, but an infield out ended the inning.

The Orioles broke it open in the ninth, scoring seven runs.  McNally led off with a double and Belanger singled him to third.  A one-out walk to Robinson loaded the bases.  Powell then hit a two-run double, Merv Rettenmund followed with an RBI single, an error brought home a fourth run, and Johnson capped the inning with a three-run homer.  It was 11-3, and that would be the final score.

WP:  McNally (1-0).

LP:  Tom Hall (0-1).

S:  None.

Notes:  Rick Renick was at third base, with Killebrew moving to first and Rich Reese out of the lineup.  Danny Thompson was at second base in place of Rod Carew.  Bob Allison pinch-hit for Williams in the seventh.  Jim Holt pinch-ran for Brant Alyea in the eighth inning and stayed in the game in center field, with Tovar moving to left.  Frank Quilici pinch-hit for Luis Tiant in the ninth.

Hall pitched 3.1 innings, allowing four runs on six hits and three walks and striking out four.

Hall had pitched very well down the stretch, but the fact that he was the number two starter showed how injuries hurt the Twins starting rotation.  Dave Boswell was unavailable and Tiant might as well have been, being used in mop-up relief.  Bert Blyleven would not have been a bad choice, but he was even younger than Hall (age 20 versus age 22) and Hall had really pitched better.  Jim Kaat would've been another choice, but perhaps Bill Rigney wanted to start Hall at home, where he might be less nervous, then to make him deal with a road crowd.  I haven't looked ahead, and don't remember, who started game three.  We'll see tomorrow.

I guess I didn't need to worry about Williams being overused in game one, as he threw three more perfect innings in game two.  The ninth-inning runs came mostly off of Ron Perranoski, who was in his second inning of work after pitching a perfect inning the day before.

The Twins had now played five ALCS games against Baltimore and lost all five.  They were now facing an elimination game in Baltimore.

Record:  The Twins trailed the best-of-five series, 0-2.

Keeping Track

1970 Rewind: ALCS Game One

BALTIMORE 10, MINNESOTA 6 IN MINNESOTA

Date:  Saturday, October 3.

Batting stars:  George Mitterwald was 3-for-4 with two runs and two RBIs.  Tony Oliva was 3-for-4.  Harmon Killebrew was 2-for-5 with a home run and two RBIs.  Cesar Tovar was 2-for-5.

Pitching stars:  Stan Williams pitched three shutout innings, giving up two hits and a walk.  Ron Perranoski struck out two in a scoreless inning.

Opposition stars:  Brooks Robinson was 3-for-3 with a double.  Boog Powell was 2-for-5 with a home run and two RBIs.  Elrod Hendricks was 2-for-5 with two runs.  Mike Cuellar was 1-for-2 with a grand slam.  Don Buford was 1-for-3 with a home run and two walks.  Dick Hall pitched 4.2 scoreless innings, giving up one hit and striking out three.

The game:  The Twins got on the board first.  Tovar led off the first with a single, was bunted to second, and scored on a Killebrew single.  The Orioles took the lead in the second, however.  One-out singles by Hendricks and Robinson put two on, and Dave Johnson was hit by a pitch to load the bases.  Mark Belanger hit a potential double play grounder, but a throwing error by Danny Thompson allowed two runs to score and put Baltimore up 2-1.  The Twins tied it in the second when Mitterwald singled, went to third on Thompson's double, and scored on a squeeze bunt by Jim Perry.

But the roof fell in in the fourth inning.  Frank Robinson and Hendricks led off with singles, and a sacrifice fly by Brooks Robinson put the Orioles ahead again.  Singles by Johnson and Belanger loaded the bases, and Mike Cuellar--Mike Cuellar--hit a grand slam to make it 7-2 Baltimore.  Buford followed with another homer, and with two out Powell homered, making the score 9-2.

The Twins tried to battle back.  In the bottom of the fourth Mitterwald singled, went to second on an infield grounder, and scored on a Tovar single.  Killebrew led off the fifth with a home run, followed by an Oliva doubled.  Brant Alyea walked, a ground out moved them to second and third, and Mitterwald delivered a two-run single to cut the lead to 9-6.

But that was as good as it would get.  The Orioles added a run in the sixth when Hall singled, went to second on a walk to Buford, and scored on Powell's single, making it 10-6.  The Twins got only one hit in the last four innings.

WP:  Hall (1-0).

LP:  Perry (0-1).

S:  None.

Notes:  Thompson was at second base in place of Rod Carew.  Bob Allison pinch-hit for Bill Zepp in the fourth inning.  Frank Quilici went to second in the sixth inning as part of a double switch.  Jim Holt pinch-hit for Williams in the eighth.  Carew pinch-hit for Quilici in the eighth.  Holt stayed in the game in center field, with Tovar moving to second base.

Neither starting pitcher fared well.  Perry pitched 3.1 innings, giving up eight runs (seven earned) on eight hits and a walk and striking out one.  Mike Cuellar pitched 4.1 innings, allowing six runs on ten hits and a walk and striking out two.

These losses to the Orioles were almost as frustrating as the losses to the Yankees would be thirty-some years later.  You lose because Mike Cuellar, of all people, hits a grand slam.  Cuellar hit seven home runs for his career and had a lifetime line of .115/.128/.171.  And he hits a grand slam.  Incredible.  It's really to the Twins credit that they continued to fight and battled back as well as they did.  I mean, I know that's what they're supposed to do and what they get paid to do, but still, giving up that grand slam, and then seeing two more home runs that same inning, had to be really disheartening.

It was a different time, and that plays into it, but I still think you can question using one of the two best relievers, Williams, for three innings in that situation.  Yes, you never want to give up on a playoff game, and back then, they still might bring Williams back in the next game.  But still, burning one of your two best relievers in a game that, let's face it, the odds are against you coming back to win doesn't make much sense.

But, tomorrow's another day, and the Twins would try to get the series back to even.

Record:  The Twins trailed the best-of-five series, 0-1.

Keeping Track

1970 Rewind: Game One Hundred Sixty-two

2 Comments

MINNESOTA 4, KANSAS CITY 0 IN MINNESOTA

Date:  Thursday, October 1.

Batting stars:  Tony Oliva was 2-for-3 with a triple and a double.  Jim Kaat was 1-for-2 with a two-run homer.

Pitching stars:  Kaat struck out seven in seven shutout innings, giving up three hits and a walk.  Stan Williams retired all five men he faced.

Opposition star:  Bob Johnson struck out ten in an eight-inning complete game, giving up four runs on nine hits and no walks.

The game:  The Twins got on the board in the first inning when Cesar Tovar led off with a single and scored from first on an Oliva double.  With two out in the second Danny Thompson doubled and Kaat followed with a two-run homer, making it 3-0 Twins.  They added one more run in the sixth when Oliva tripled and Cotton Nash followed with an RBI single.

The Royals had only three hits in the game, all singles.  The closest they came to scoring was the seventh.  With one out, Lou Piniella and Bob Oliver hit consecutive singles.  Jim Campanis then grounded into a double play to end the inning.

WP:  Kaat (14-10).

LP:  Johnson (8-13).

S:  Ron Perranoski (34).

Notes:  Oliva ended the season batting .325.  Tovar was 1-for-2 and ended at .300.  Williams ended the season with an ERA of 1.99.  Perranoski ended the season with an ERA of 2.43.

Herman Hill was 0-for-1 and ended batting .091.  Charlie Manuel was 0-for-3 and ended batting .188.

This was the last game of Nash's major league career.

This was Kaat's only home run of the season.  He hit sixteen for his career, with a high of three in 1964.

Perranoski came in to record the last out and get the save.  There was no apparent reason to remove Williams and bring him in.  Perhaps the Twins wanted him to get into a game before the playoffs.  He would have been the league saves leader regardless.  Not a big deal, obviously, just a curiosity some fifty-two years later.

In the east, the Baltimore Orioles won the division by fifteen games over the second-place Yankees.  Thus, for the second consecutive season, the Twins would play the Orioles in the American League Championship Series.

Record:  The Twins were 98-64, in first place in the American League West, nine games ahead of Oakland.

Keeping Track

1970 Rewind: Game One Hundred Sixty-one

MINNESOTA 6, KANSAS CITY 4 IN MINNESOTA

Date:  Wednesday, September 30.

Batting stars:  Cesar Tovar was 2-for-4 with a double and two RBIs.  Paul Ratliff was 1-for-1 with a three-run homer, his fifth.

Pitching stars:  Bert Blyleven pitched eight innings, giving up four runs (one eanred) on five hits and four walks and striking out three.  Hal Haydel struck out two in a scoreless inning.

Opposition stars:  Bob Oliver was 2-for-4 with a triple.  Lou Piniella was 2-for-4 with a double.  Wally Bunker pitched eight innings, giving up four runs on six hits and no walks and striking out six.

The game:  Each team put a man in scoring position in the first but did not score.  In the second Oliver led off with a triple.  Bobby Floyd walked and went to second on a wild pitch.  With two out, they both scored on an error, putting the Royals up 2-0.

There were no more runs, and in fact no more hits, until the fifth.  George Mitterwald and Blyleven singled, putting men on first and second with two out.  Tovar then hit a two-run double, with Blyleven scoring from first, to tie it up 2-2.

Kansas City got the lead back in the sixth without getting a hit.  A walk, a two-base error, and an intentional walk loaded the bases with one out and Floyd hit a sacrifice fly.  The Royals added an insurance run in the seventh when Rojas hit a two-out double and scored on Piniella's single.

It stayed 4-2 until the bottom of the ninth.  Singles by Tony Oliva and Harmon Killebrew were followed by a passed ball, putting the tying run in scoring position.  Jim Holt hit a sacrifice fly to make it 4-3.  Brant Alyea walked and Ratliff delivered a pinch-hit three-run homer to give the Twins the victory.

WP:  Haydel (2-0).

LP:  Jim York (1-1).

S:  None.

Notes:  Rod Carew was at first base, with Danny Thompson at second and Rich Reese out of the lineup.  Holt replaced Carew at first in the sixth.  Reese pinch-hit for Blyleven in the eighth.  Herman Hill pinch-ran for Killebrew in the ninth.  Jim Nettles pinch-ran for Alyea in the ninth.  Ratliff pinch-hit for Mitterwald in the ninth.

Carew was 0-for-2 and was batting .366.  Oliva was 1-for-4 an was batting .323.  Haydel had an ERA of 3.00.

This was the first time Carew played first base in the major leagues.  He would not play there again until 1975.  In 1976, he became a full-time first baseman.

Even when you're just marking time until the playoffs, a walkoff home run is still fun.

Record:  The Twins were 97-64, in first place in the American League West, nine games ahead of Oakland.

Keeping Track

1970 Rewind: Game One Hundred Sixty

KANSAS CITY 14, MINNESOTA 13 IN MINNESOTA (12 INNINGS)

Date:  Tuesday, September 29.

Batting stars:  Leo Cardenas was 5-for-6 with a walk and four RBIs.  Tony Oliva was 3-for-4 with two RBIs.  Jim Holt was 3-for-7.  George Mitterwald was 2-for-2 with a double, a walk, a hit-by-pitch, a stolen base (his third), and two RBIs.  Cesar Tovar was 2-for-5 with a double, two walks, and three RBIs.

Pitching star:  Stan Williams pitched three shutout innings, giving up two hits and striking out one.

Opposition stars:  Billy Sorrell was 3-for-5 with two runs and three RBIs.  Cookie Rojas was 3-for-6 with two runs.  Pat Kelly was 2-for-2.  Bobby Floyd was 2-for-5 with a walk and two runs.  Ed Kirkpatrick was 2-for-6 with a double, a stolen base (his fourth), and three RBIs.  Bob Oliver was 2-for-6.  Jim York pitched two shutout innings, giving up a hit and striking out one.

The game:  The Twins led early.  Tovar led off the first with a walk and Cardenas and Oliva singled, loading the bases.  Harmon Killebrew hit a two-run single, giving the Twins a 2-0 lead.  The Twins again loaded the bases in the third inning, this time with two out, on singles by Mitterwald and Tovar and a walk to Cardenas.  And this time it was Oliva delivering a two-run single, making it 4-0.  The Twins added one more in the third when Mitterwald drew a two-out walk, stole second, and scored on a Danny Thompson single, bringing the score to 5-0.

But the Royals came roaring back in the fifth.  Consecutive one-out singles by Oliver, Rojas, Floyd, Tommy Matchick, Sorrell, and Kelly resulted in five runs, tying the score at 5-5.

The Twins took the lead back in the fifth.  Killebrew walked, Holt singled, and a two-out double by Mitterwald made it 7-5.  In the fifth Bob Allison reached on an error and scored on a Cardenas single.  Oliva followed with a single, and another error brought home another run, making it 9-5 Twins.

It stayed 9-5 until the ninth, when Kansas City had another big inning.  Singles by Rojas, Floyd, Sorrell, and Jackie Hernandez made it 9-7 with one out and two on.  A ground out followed for the second out, but an error made it 9-8, Kirkpatrick's two-run double made it 10-9 Royals, and another error increased the Kansas City lead to 11-9.

This time it was the Twins' turn to come back.  In the bottom of the ninth Rich Reese walked and singles by Paul Ratliff, Cardenas, and Charlie Manuel tied the score and sent the game to extra innings.

Neither team scored in the tenth, but each team scored two in the eleventh.  In the top of the inning Eliseo Rodriguez walked, was bunted to second, and scored on a Lou Piniella single.  Piniella then stole second and scored on Kirkpatrick's single to give the Royals a 13-11 lead.  But in the bottom of the inning Cotton Nash walked, Tovar doubled, and Cardenas delivered another two-run single to tie it 13-13.

In the twelfth Floyd led off with a walk, Sorrell singled with one out, and pitcher Ted Abernathy hit a two-out single to put Kansas City back up 14-13.  This time the Twins could not come back.  Holt had a leadoff single but could advance no farther and the game was over.

WP:  Abernathy (10-3).

LP:  Pete Hamm (0-2).

S:  None.

Notes:  Holt was again in center field, with Tovar at third base, Killebrew on first, and Reese out of the lineup.  Thompson was at second in place of Rod Carew.

There were a lot of substitutions.  Allison pinch-hit for starter Jim Perry in the fifth and stayed in the game in right field, with Oliva coming out.  Steve Brye went to left and Jim Nettles to right in the eighth, replacing Brant Alyea and Allison.  Carew pinch-hit for Mitterwald in the ninth, with Rick Dempsey coming in to catch.  Reese pinch-hit for Thompson in the ninth, with Frank Quilici pinch-running for Reese and going to second base.  Paul Ratliff pinch-hit for Brye in the ninth, with Herman Hill pinch-running for Ratliff.  Manuel pinch-hit for Bill Zepp in the ninth and stayed in the game in left field.  Nash replaced Herman Hill in the lineup and went to first base, with Killebrew coming out of the game.  Rick Renick went to shortstop in place of Cardenas in the twelfth.

Carew was 0-for-1 and was batting .370.  Oliva was batting .324.  Williams had an ERA of 2.01.  Ron Perranoski gave up four runs (two earned) in a third of an inning and had an ERA of 2.44.

Manuel was 1-for-2 and was batting .197.  Hamm gave up one run in one inning and had an ERA of 5.51.

Perry pitched five innings, allowing five runs (four earned) on nine hits and no walks and striking out two.

Al Fitzmorris was the starting pitcher, but he came out of the game without throwing a pitch.  Paul Splittorff replaced him.  I have to assume Fitzmorris either was ill or injured himself warming up--I see no reason this would be some sort of ploy in a meaningless game.

Floyd had another big game against the Twins.  He was now 8-for-13 with three doubles and a walk in his last three games.  He played in 17 major league games in 1970, nine of them against the Twins.  In those nine games he batted .320/.400/.440.  For his career against the Twins, he batted .239/.313/.310 in 27 games.  I guess it just goes to show that anyone can get hot for a few games.

The Twins used eighteen position players and six pitchers in this game.  With the only slightly expanded September rosters now, we will never be able to see this again.

Record:  The Twins were 96-64, in first place in the American League West, eight games ahead of Oakland.

Keeping Track

1970 Rewind: Game One Hundred Fifty-nine

MINNESOTA 1, KANSAS CITY 0 IN MINNESOTA

Date:  Monday, September 28.

Batting stars:  Harmon Killebrew was 1-for-3 with a double.  Brant Alyea was 1-for-3 with a double.

Pitching stars:  Tom Hall pitched eight shutout innings, giving up five hits and a walk and striking out seven.  Ron Perranoski pitched a scoreless innings, giving up one hit and striking out one.

Opposition stars:  Bobby Floyd was 2-for-4 with a double.  Dick Drago pitched seven innings, giving up one run on six hits and a walk and striking out two.

The game:  Again we had a game of missed opportunities.  Amos Otis led off with a single and stole second with none out.  Floyd doubled in the second with one out.  Killebrew led off the second with a double.  The Royals got a pair of two-out single in the third.  Yet, the score remained 0-0 until the fifth.

Alyea led off the fifth with a double.  George Mitterwald then bunted him to third and Danny Thompson bunted him home, giving the Twins a 1-0 lead.

And it held up, because after that the opportunities went away.  Neither team got a man past first base after the fifth inning.  The Twins won it 1-0.

WP:  Hall (11-6).

LP:  Drago (9-15).

S:  Perranoski (33).

Notes:  Jim Holt was in center field, with Cesar Tovar moving to third, Killebrew to first, and Rich Reese out of the lineup.  Thompson remained at second in place of Rod Carew.

Jim Nettles went to left field in the eighth in place of Alyea.  Charlie Manuel pinch-hit for Hall in the eighth.

Tony Oliva was 0-for-3 and was batting .321.  Hall had an ERA of 2.55.  Perranoski had an ERA of 2.28.

Manuel was 0-for-1 and was batting .186.

This was a Monday afternoon game.  It was a makeup game, making up a snowed out game on April 14.  While I can't know how much it affected play, and while I'm all for playing all 162 games, I can't think that anyone was too thrilled about having to play a meaningless Monday afternoon makeup game.  The game took one hour and fifty-one minutes, so I suspect a lot of the players wanted to get it over with.  The attendance was 1,100, so apparently there weren't a whole lot of fans who were too excited about this one, either.

One guy who apparently was excited about it was Bobby Floyd.  After going 4-for-4 with two doubles the day before, he went 2-for-4 with a double in this game, making him (obviously) 6-for-8 with three doubles over two games.  He only had fourteen hits and four doubles for the season (45 at-bats).  He had about half his season in these two games.

Record:  The Twins were 96-63, in first place in the American League West, nine games ahead of Oakland.

Keeping Track

1970 Rewind: Game One Hundred Fifty-eight

KANSAS CITY 4, MINNESOTA 3 IN KANSAS CITY

Date:  Sunday, September 27.

Batting stars:  George Mitterwald was 2-for-3 with a double.  Tony Oliva was 2-for-4 with a triple.  Brant Alyea was 2-for-4.

Pitching star:  Luis Tiant pitched four innings, giving up two runs on six hits and a walk and striking out two.

Opposition stars:  Bobby Floyd was 4-for-4 with two doubles.  Lou Piniella was 3-for-4.  Amos Otis was 2-for-4 with a double and two runs.  Jim Rooker pitched 7.2 innings, giving up three runs on eight hits and two walks and striking out seven.

The game:  The Royals took the lead in the first inning.  Otis led off with a single and Piniella hit a one-out single.  A pickoff error moved the runners to second and third and a wild pitch brought home a run.  Ed Kirkpatrick's RBI single made it 2-0 Kansas City.

Then came some missed opportunities.  The Royals had men on first and third with none out in the second.  The Twins had men on first and second with two out in the third.  The Twins had men on second and third with one out in the fourth.  The Twins had a man on third with one out in the sixth.  But it was still 2-0 until the bottom of the sixth, when doubles by Bob Oliver and Floyd plated a Kansas City run and made it 3-0.  The Twins had a man on second with one out in the seventh and did not score.  In the bottom of the seventh Otis doubled and scored on Piniella's single to make it 4-0.

The Twins finally broke through in the eighth.  Harmon Killebrew hit a one-out single.  With two out Alyea singled and Bob Allison delivered a two-run double.  Rich Reese then hit an RBI single to cut the lead to 4-3.

That's all there was, though.  The last four Twins batters went out and the score stayed 4-3 Royals.

WP:  Rooker (10-15).

LP:  Tiant (7-3).

S:  Ted Abernathy (14).

Notes:  Danny Thompson was at shortstop in place of Leo Cardenas.  Frank Quilici was at second base in place of Rod Carew.  Allison was in right field, with Tony Oliva moving to center and Cesar Tovar out of the lineup.  Rick Renick was at third base, with Killebrew moving to first and Reese out of the lineup.

Steve Brye pinch-hit for Tiant in the fifth.  Tovar pinch-hit for Jim Kaat in the seventh.  Jim Nettles pinch-ran for Alyea in the eighth and stayed in the game in left field.  Reese pinch-hit for Renick in the eighth, with Herman Hill pinch-running for Reese.  Paul Ratliff pinch-hit for Mitterwald in the eighth and stayed in the game at catcher.  Cardenas went to shortstop in the eighth, with Thompson moving to third.  Jim Holt pinch-hit for Bill Zepp in the ninth.  Charlie Manuel pinch-hit for Quilici in the ninth.

Tiant was 0-for-1 and was batting .406.  Oliva was batting .322.

Manuel was 0-for-1 and was batting .190.  Brye was 0-for-1 and was batting .182.

It's sad to me that, with only slightly expanded rosters now, you can't have box scores that look like this.

This was Tiant's first appearance since September 7.

This would be the last start of Allison's career.

I have no memory of Bobby Floyd, but he played in parts of seven seasons.  He never played a lot--his highest at-bat total was 134, and it was the only time he got above 100.  He was a utility infielder, and was presumably considered a good glove man.  I would guess that this was probably his only four-hit game.  His career numbers are .219/.264/.266.    He did have a long career as a minor league manager and coach, and was on the Mets major league coaching staff in 2001 and 2004.

This closed out the three-game series in Kansas City.  The Twins would now come home to end their season with four more against the Royals.

Record:  The Twins were 96-63, in first place in the American League West, nine games ahead of Oakland.

Keeping Track

1970 Rewind: Game One Hundred Fifty-seven

KANSAS CITY 5, MINNESOTA 0 IN KANSAS CITY

Date:  Saturday, September 26.

Batting stars:  Leo Cardenas was 1-for-3 with a double and a walk.  Rick Renick was 1-for-3 with a walk.

Pitching stars:  Pete Hamm pitched two shutout innings, giving up a hit and a walk and striking out one.  Steve Barber pitched two perfect innings and struck out one.

Opposition stars:  Bob Johnson pitched a complete game shutout, giving up four hits and three walks and striking out eight.  Cookie Rojas was 3-for-4.  Amos Otis was 2-for-5 with a double.  Bob Oliver was 1-for-4 with a home run (his twenty-seventh) and two RBIs.

The game:  All the scoring came early.  In the first, Otis singled, George Spriggs walked, Lou Piniella had an RBI single, and a ground out scored another, making it 2-0 Royals.  In the second Rojas and Tommy Matchick singled, a bunt moved them to second and third, and Spriggs delivered a two-run single.  Oliver homered in the third to make it 5-0.

And that was it.  The Twins got a one-out double from Cardenas in the first.  They had men on first and second with none out in the fifth on a walk and a hit batsman.  Their biggest threat came in the seventh, when Rick Dempsey walked, Renick singled, and a wild pitch moved the runners to second and third with none out.  But a foul pop, a strikeout, and a ground out ended the inning.

WP:  Johnson (8-12).

LP:  Bert Blyleven (10-9).

S:  None.

Notes:  Jim Nettles was in left field in place of Brant Alyea.  Jim Holt was in center field in place of Cesar Tovar.  Paul Ratliff was at catcher in place of George Mitterwald.  Rick Renick was at third base in place of Harmon Killebrew.  Danny Thompson was at second base in place of Rod Carew.

Carew pinch-hit for Blyleven in the third inning.  Charlie Manuel pinch-hit for Thompson in the fifth and stayed in the game in left field, with Frank Quilici replacing Nettles and going to second base.  Tovar pinch-hit for Hal Haydel.  Rick Dempsey went in to catch in the fifth, replacing Ratliff.  Alyea pinch-hit for Hamm in the seventh.

Carew was 0-for-1 and was batting .372.  Tony Oliva was 1-for-4 and was batting .321.

Dempsey was 0-for-1 and was batting zero.  Manuel was 0-for-2 and was batting .193.  Hamm pitched two shutout innings and had an ERA of 5.28.

Blyleven pitched just two innings, giving up four runs on five hits and two walks and striking out none.

The Twins some relievers who hadn't pitched for quite a while.  Haydel hadn't pitched since September 12.  Hamm hadn't pitched since August 23, although he may have appeared in some minor league games.  Barber hadn't pitched in the majors since July 26, although he presumably was pitching in the minors.  The minor league seasons ended around Labor Day, though, so it had still been a while.

I probably knew this at the time and forgot it, but Dempsey is the uncle of long-time major league catcher Gregg Zaun.

Record:  The Twins were 95-62, in first place in the American League West, 8.5 games ahead of Oakland.

 

Keeping Track

1970 Rewind: Game One Hundred Fifty-six

MINNESOTA 1, KANSAS CITY 0 IN KANSAS CITY

Date:  Friday, September 25.

Batting star:  Steve Brye was 1-for-3 with a double and a walk.

Pitching star:  Jim Perry pitched a complete game shutout, giving up two hits and no walks and striking out seven.

Opposition stars:  Cookie Rojas was 2-for-3.  Wally Bunker pitched a complete game, giving up one run on four hits and two walks and striking out one.

The game:  Neither team got a hit until the fourth.  Leo Cardenas led off the inning with a walk, went to second on a Harmon Killebrew single, and scored on a Brye double to give the Twins a 1-0 lead.

And that was it.  Neither team got a man past first base after that.  Both Royals hits were singles by Rojas.  He got one leading off the sixth and he got one with two out in the eighth.

WP:  Perry (24-12).

LP:  Bunker (2-11).

S:  None.

Notes:  Jim Nettles was in center field in place of Cesar Tovar.  Brye was in left in place of Brant Alyea.  Rick Dempsey was behind the plate in place of George Mitterwald.  Danny Thompson was at second base in place of Rod Carew.

Frank Quilici went to second base in the fifth inning, with Thompson moving to shortstop and Cardenas coming out of the game.

Tony Oliva was 0-for-4 and was batting .322.  Nettles was 1-for-4 and was batting .308.  Perry had an ERA of 2.96.

Dempsey was 0-for-3 and was batting zero.

With the division clinched, Bill Rigney obviously gave some guys a day off.  The only ones who really needed the rest, though, were Tovar and Cardenas.  The others had plenty of time off during the season.  Oliva and Killebrew, who had played nearly every game, remained in the lineup.

You see that Bunker was 2-11 and you might think he was awful, but he wasn't.  He wasn't great, but his ERA was 4.22 and his WHIP was 1.31.  One suspects that the Royals simply didn't score runs for him.

This was the first of seven games against the Royals to close out the season.

Record:  The Twins were 95-61, in first place in the American League West, 9.5 games ahead of Oakland.

Keeping Track

1970 Rewind: Game One Hundred Fifty-five

MINNESOTA 7, OAKLAND 4 IN OAKLAND

Date:  Wednesday, September 23.

Batting stars:  Tony Oliva was 3-for-4 with three runs.  George Mitterwald was 2-for-4 with a three-run homer, his fifteenth.  Jim Holt was 2-for-4 with a double and two RBIs.  Jim Nettles was 2-for-5.

Pitching star:  Bill Zepp retired all four men he faced.

Opposition stars:  Bert Campaneris was 1-for-5 with a home run, his twenty-second.  Dave Duncan was 1-for-3 with a three-run homer (his tenth) and a walk.  Marcel Lachemann struck out two in two perfect innings.

The game:  Nettles led off the game with a single.  With one out, Oliva singled and Harmon Killebrew walked, loading the bases.  With two out, Holt delivered a two-run double, putting the Twins in front 2-0.  In the third, Oliva and Holt singled and Mitterwald hit a two-out three-run homer, making it 5-0 Twins.  It went to 7-0 in the seventh.  With one out, Leo Cardenas doubled, Oliva singled, and Killebrew walked, loading the bases, and Rich Reese came through with a two-run single.

Over the first six innings the Athletics drew seven walks, but did not score because they had no hits.  That changed in the seventh when Campaneris homered.  In the eighth Don Mincher and Sal Bando walked and Duncan hit a three-run homer, cutting the lead to 7-4.  But that was as good as it got for them, and the Twins had another victory.

WP:  Hall (10-6).

LP:  Catfish Hunter (17-14).

S:  Zepp (2).

Notes:  Nettles was in left field in place of Brant Alyea.  Holt was in center field in place of Cesar Tovar.  Danny Thompson was at second base in place of Rod Carew.  Tovar pinch-ran for Killebrew in the seventh, with Frank Quilici going to third base.  Herman Hill replaced Tony Oliva in right field in the seventh.

Nettles was batting .333.  Oliva was batting .324.  Hall had an ERA of 2.69.  Hill was 0-for-1 and was batting .095.

Oddly, for the day after a clincher, the Twins used pretty much their regular lineup.  The only major change was Nettles in the outfield rather than Tovar.

Hall pitched 7.2 innings.  He gave up only two hits, both home runs.  He struck out nine, but he also walked nine.

Hunter pitched 6.1 innings for Oakland.  He allowed seven runs on eleven hits and a walk and struck out six.

The Twins would finish up their road trip with three games in Kansas City.  They would then come home for a season-ending four-game series, also with Kansas City, meaning they would end the season with seven games against the Royals.  That seems like really odd scheduling to me.

Record:  The Twins were 94-61, in first place in the American League West, 9.5 games ahead of Oakland.